


Keeping Up Appearances

by bayoublackjack



Series: Love in London [16]
Category: Royal Pains
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Implied Sexual Content, Multiple Crossovers, Outdoor Sex, POV Divya Katdare, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-27
Updated: 2014-09-27
Packaged: 2018-02-18 22:58:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,573
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2365133
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bayoublackjack/pseuds/bayoublackjack
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Divya attempts to find a balance as she carries on her secret relationship with Rafa while perpetuating her fake engagement with Jeremiah.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Keeping Up Appearances

Divya had only known Rafa a week, but that was all it took.  They had been in constant contact ever since the party and made time to meet up whenever both their schedules permitted, as was the case today.

Rafa was staying at a palatial home in Kew that belonged to a friend of his team’s owner.  He gave her a tour of the grounds, which included a visit to see his beloved horse.  They agreed to schedule a date to go for a ride, but once they found themselves in a quiet corner of the stable, future plans gave way to present desires.

As a girl, Divya had wondered what it would be like to have sex in a barn.  One of her schoolmates liked to read Harlequin novels that she stole from her single aunt’s flat.  One such novel featured a lonely heiress destined to marry a man she didn’t love while maintaining a passionate affair with the handsome stable boy.  There were no stable boys in Divya’s life, but there had been a riding coach.  All the girls fancied him and so did at least one of the boys, who incidentally he later married.  Still, between the trashy romance novels and idle gossip about her riding coach, Divya had developed a long held fantasy about a passionate liaison in a stable.

Her life had already begun to resemble the plot of one those silly stories.  The lonely doctor that just barely avoided an arranged marriage only to take a passionate Argentinean polo player as her lover while maintaining the guise of being in a relationship with a kind but stoic American physician.  So she might as well embrace it.  Besides, it wasn’t every day that people had the opportunity to live out their ultimate sexual fantasy.

That afternoon with Rafa, Divya quickly learned that a roll in the hay was better in theory than in practice.  Her back was pressed against the wall, her dress was hitched up high and her knickers were brazenly tucked in Rafa’s back pocket.  The awkwardness of the encounter didn’t slow their resolve though.  Rafa was like a stallion, strong and uninhibited with plenty of stamina to spare.  It wasn’t the first time they had been intimate, but it was certainly the most thrilling.  Divya was worried about being caught, but soon gave in to the spontaneity of the moment.  Afterwards, she was certain that she’d either be sore the next morning or find a splinter in her bum, but it was well worth it.

“I’ve always wanted to do that,” Divya confessed as she fixed her clothes.

“We can always do it again,” Rafa told her with a smile as he pulled her flush against his and nuzzled her neck.

“Tempting,” she said, allowing his lips to linger against her skin a moment longer before pulling away.  “But I have somewhere to be,” she told as she glanced at her watch.  “Shit!”

“What?”

“Oh God, I’m late!” Divya replied frantically.  “I was supposed to meet my parents for dinner.”  She looked down at herself.  “I can’t go like this.  I need to shower and change first.”

“Shower here,” Rafa suggested.

“That’s really very kind of you,” Divya said as she began the long walk back to her car.  “But I’d still need something to wear and I picked an outfit especially for tonight.  It’s an important meal.  Tonight’s the night my parents finally meet…” she bit her tongue.  “It’s extremely important.”

Rafa trailed behind her.  “Is there anything I can do?”

Divya paused and faced him.  “No,” she said gently.  “Today has been enough,” she assured him and kissed him slowly.  “It was wonderful.”

“Will I see you again before I leave?” he asked.

Divya couldn’t hide the surprise at his question.  “You’re leaving?”

Rafa nodded.  “I have to return to Argentina next week.”

“Yes, of course,” she replied, slightly crestfallen.  “But you’ll come back to England…won’t you?”

“For you, cariño…”  Rafa lifted her chin with his hand and smiled.  “Absolutamente.”  He leaned in for another kiss.

Divya spent much longer than she should have snogging Rafa at that point.  So it was a rush to get from Kew back to Kensington.  When she arrived home, she hurried inside.  “Mum?  Dad?  Jeremiah?  I’m so sorry I’m late I…”  She paused as she entered the lounge and found Jeremiah sitting on the couch alone.  “Where are my parents?”

“They left.”

“What?”

“We had dinner without you,” Jeremiah said.  “Italian.  I considered making reservations for an Indian restaurant, but I thought that might be offensive.  Then I remembered how much you liked Italian,” he told her.  “When you didn’t answer any of my calls, I figured you must have had a meeting.  So your parents and I went ahead and had dinner without you.”  He stood up.  “There’s spaghetti all'Arrabbiata in the refrigerator for you.”

Divya set her purse down.  “How did you know I…”

“You ordered it a lot in New York,” Jeremiah answered.  “And tiramisu.  There’s some of that as well.”

Divya smiled.  “You are without a doubt, the most thoughtful fake fiancé I’ve ever had.”

“I’m the only one,” Jeremiah said stiffly.  “But…you’re being facetious.”

“Yes,” Divya confirmed with a gentle.

Jeremiah gave a curt nod.  “Then I’ll take the compliment.”

“Good.”  Divya slipped her shoes off.  “Will you be up much longer?”

“I do like to keep a steady sleep schedule.  Why?”

“I think we should talk about your dinner with my parents,” Divya suggested.  “We need to make sure our stories match.”

“Okay.”

“I just want to pop into the shower first if that’s alright with you.”

“Probably for the best,” Jeremiah replied.  “There’s hay in your hair.”

Divya quickly swept a hand through her hair and retrieved the offending object.  “I went to the stables earlier,” she explained.  “A…friend…took me for a ride,” she added.  Well, it wasn’t a complete lie so much as a creative take on the truth.

Jeremiah didn’t question her explanation.  Instead, he simply said, “I’ll be in the library.”

Divya excused herself for a quick shower, as not to keep Jeremiah up later than his usual bed time.  Once she was out, she dried her hair then pulled on her pyjamas and dressing gown before setting off towards the library.  Jeremiah wasn’t there, but the scent of garlic and chili led her to the kitchen where he had set out her food along with a glass of red wine.

“I figured you’d be hungry,” Jeremiah explained as he held her chair out for her.

“I’m starving.  You’re too good to me,” Divya told him with a content sigh before sitting down and tucking into her food.

“Is the wine okay?” he asked.  “I looked up which wine would pair best with the flavour profile of the sauce.  According to my research, it’s important to consider the alcohol level of a wine when pairing it with a spicy dish, thirteen percent or less being preferable.  The amount of tannins is significant too.”  He gestured to the wine.  “Cerasuolo di Vittoria offers an exuberant red berry fruit framed by gentle tannins that blends well with a tomato based sauce.”  He paused.  “At least that’s what the blog entry I read said.”

Divya took a long sip of her wine and set the glass down.  “It’s perfect, Jeremiah.  Honestly.  Everything is perfect.   _You’re_ perfect.”

Jeremiah looked visibly stunned by her words, but he soon relaxed enough to speak.  “Dinner with your parents went well,” he informed her.

“Really?”  Divya continued eating.  “They didn’t ask your too many questions?”

“More than a few,” Jeremiah answered.  “Mostly about myself, but they wanted to know how we met.  I told them the truth.”

“That’s fine,” Divya told him.  “In fact, the more of our story that’s based in truth, the better.”

“There’s one more thing,” Jeremiah said.

Divya lowered her fork and picked up her wine.  “Oh?”

“I have something for you.”

“What is it?”

Jeremiah reached into his pocket and pulled out a velvet box.  “I promised to buy you ring,” he reminded her.  “I would have bought it by myself, but I wasn’t really sure what to look for.  Tish volunteered to help,” he informed her as he opened the box to reveal an exquisite three stone princess cut diamond ring with a platinum band.

Divya stared at it with her mouth open.  “Jeremiah…”  She looked up at him.  “It’s gorgeous, but I think can’t take this.”

Jeremiah frowned.  “Do you not like it?  I can get something else.”

“No…I love it!” Divya assured him.  “It’s just…it’s…it’s…”  She struggled to find the right word.

“It’s yours,” Jeremiah said and removed the ring from its box.  “May I?” he asked reaching for her hand.  Divya reluctantly lifted her left hand, which Jeremiah clasped tenderly as he slipped the ring into place.  “It fits,” he commented as they both admired the ring.  “Both in the literal and metaphorical sense.”

Divya looked up to see a slight smile on Jeremiah’s face.  “You really are too good to me,” she reiterated before gazing down at her ring once more.  It really was a lovely ring, but she couldn’t help feeling that it was far too excessive for a fake engagement.  Tish had crossed a line by talking him into buying it.  Divya was going to have to have a long talk with Martha about her sister.


End file.
